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Smash Switch Speculation: Pokemon

Pokemon Speculation.jpg


Note: These articles are more for discussion purposes before E3. They'll be short, sweet, and to the point for a brief recap and looking into possible characters/stages for each series in Smash Bros. These also go by a "Don't expect too much" philosophy. Please remember to be civil in the comments discussion.


The Pokemon series has had a big presence behind in the Smash Bros. series;. While it's not as omnipotent as Mario's presence in Smash Bros., Pokemon has always had a ton of content without spin-off franchises included. With the original Super Smash Bros., Pokemon was one of two franchises with two characters (Pikachu and Jigglypuff) and a stage. Super Smash Bros. Melee brought the total number of characters up to four with the addition of Mewtwo and Pichu and two stages. Super Smash Bros. Brawl removed Mewtwo and Pichu, it also added two new characters in the form of Pokemon Trainer and Lucario, keeping the total at four characters. Super Smash Bros. for 3DS and Wii U had a final total of six characters, with the removal of Pokemon Trainer, the return of Charizard as a stand-alone character, the introduction of Greninja, and later the return of Mewtwo as the first DLC character. Smash Wii U/3DS also had four stages across the two versions.

So, what can we expect this time?

Returning Characters

Pikachu and Jigglypuff are bound to return in Smash Bros. for Switch - That's very certain. Beyond that? It's almost anyone's guess. Greninja, Charizard, Mewtwo, and Lucario are honestly a toss up, but all of them are still high in popularity and likely to return. Unfortunately, Pokemon Trainer was a bit too ambitious to work, and Squirtle/Ivysaur on their own don't seem all that likely. Pichu? It's another toss-up; if the roster is feeling really generous with Downloadable Content, I can see this.

New Characters

Pokemon has a lot of characters, but thankfully, most of them aren't prominent. Chances are it'll scope down to either a starter or some other iconic Pokemon. The biggest toss-ups for this are Gen 7 (Decidueye and Incineroar probably being the safest bets). Considering how early in Generation 6's development Greninja was finalized for Smash 3DS/Wii U, a Generation 8 Pokemon is also a possibility, though . Pokemon will have at least a new character for advertising sake, but probably just one, plus a returning veteran.

Returning Stages

Kalos Pokemon League and one of the Pokemon Stadium stages seem the most likely, though PokeFloats is a possibility as well.

New Stages

Something from Pokemon Switch and/or the Alola region.

Author's Note: What are your thoughts on the Pokemon franchise? What Pokemon related content would you like to see in Smash for Switch? Let us know in the comments below!
 
Lucas "Thirdkoopa" Guimaraes

Comments

I’m really enjoying these articles. They are quick and I personally great at presenting a topic. Sad to see there’s not much conversation going into them. It’s good to have a singular topic to discuss about rather than a multitude of them like in other threads. It would also be nice if links were included in the article to direct readers to thread so ofninterest in the Switch section like character support threads, stage speculation, assist trophies, and, in this case, Pokeballs.

Anyways, Pokemon probably will get a newcomer and that being either a Gen 7 or 8 if it comes out within this year. Considering Gen 7 was our during Smash switch’s development, we could potentially see a Gen 7 Rep. My bet is on Decidueye.

Though I’m stuck on wether an appropriate stage would be either Ultra Space or Aether Foundation as a stage.
 
Pokemon can be a rather complex series for finding new representatives. When going by one of the 7th generation's popularity charts, Rowlet and Mimikyu are quite popular, but their playable odds are not that great. In fact, the latter probably has potential as a Smash Run enemy, assuming that Smash Run does happen to return.

And then there are the Ultra Beasts and their unique Beast Boost ability. Beast Boost seems like it would have a good deal of potential as a new mechanic, but of all the Ultra Beasts that we have so far, Buzzwole and Pheromosa are the only ones that could truly work as playable characters.

Lastly, we have the Pokemon from Pokken Tournament, but since Pokken Tournament gave Jigglypuff and Greninja the cold shoulder, a Pokken Tournament fighter isn't exactly guaranteed to make the cut in Smash Bros., unless that very fighter is already a Smash Bros. veteran.

In the end though, Pokemon is arguably at a point where it doesn't necessarily need any more reps, but when you look at the amount of Mario Universe and Fire Emblem reps that are in Smash 3DS / Wii U, pretty much anything can happen.
 
You know, if Sakurai wants 3 starter Pokemon to be represented, I'd say go for it. Maybe we could get Chesnaught, Decidueye, or Generation 8 Grass-Type Evolution. Honestly, I want Decidueye, but it might not happen. Now, before you hate on me, let me explain why. Sakurai put in Greninja to represent Pokemon X & Y. In fact, Pokemon X & Y didn't even come out at that time. So, if anything, we're probably getting a Generation 8 Grass-Type Final Evolution. Now, I don't know when the next Pokemon Announcement/Direct is, but I do know when the Smash Direct is: June 12. If we don't here anything by then, we're most likely getting Decidueye.
 
To me, Pokémon is the hardest franchise to pin newcomers from. There’s so many options, and with Pokémon Switch on the horizon, and the “Greninja/Roy Treatment” coming to one of the potential new Pokémon, assuming Pokémon Switch is Generation VIII.

However, I do believe we’ll get a Pokémon from Gen. VII/Alola Region. The games were incredible, and extremely popular. I believe there are 3 viable options for a new rep. Lycanroc, Mimikyu, and Decidueye, and in that order.

Lycanroc would be unique being a quadrupedal fighter, and using rocks to fight. As for the form they’d decide to go with, I’d believe they’d use Dusk form. It’s basically the combination of Midday and Midnight Form. That’s also the form Ash has in the anime, and they seem very close, and we all know the anime plays a part in representation.

Mimikyu is extremely popular. The Pokémon Company also pushed it heavily during Sun and Moon promotion. Also, in the anime, Mimikyu is Pikachu’s nemesis. Mimikyu HATES Pikachu. The moveset potential is there, and the Disguise gimmick could be incorporated somehow to make it unique. It’s Final Smash could be Let’s Snuggle Forever. With it being so popular, I believe Sakurai might throw us a curveball like how he did with Fire Emblem in Wii U/3DS. We all assumed Chrom would be in, and we got Robin and Lucina.

Decidueye is the final form of the most popular Pokémon from the Alola Region. It’s types have never been seen in Smash before. The archer archetype would be unique as well. The only thing I feel that’s holding it back from being my top pick for a newcomer for Pokémon is because it was in Pokkén, and Sakurai puts a lot of emphasis on uniqueness, and may not want to use a NEW Pokémon already represented in a Pokémon specific fighting game.

And to be honest, I know it’s a long shot, but... I could see both Lycanroc and Mimikyu making the roster.
 
considering that Pokemon has its own fighter in Pokken Tournament, I would not be surprised if someone on the team decided to pull a fighter from that roster and adapt it for Smash in an effort to save some time...

I'll admit, it would certainly give Pokken some serious publicity if Smash drew attention to it, much like it did with a few of the other franchises that partake in it... my only wish is that said Smash players wouldn't get so turned off so easily in trying it.

but then, who am I kidding, a large amount of the Smash fans these days probably only know of a lot of nintendo franchises and a few third parties only through this crossover, and I think that's a shame.

regarding the Pokemon topic in general... the only real thing stopping the Smash Devs from pulling a random name from the Pokemon lottery is the fact that certain ones are more popular. deciding on a small number from over 700 potentials, even if you limited to non-legendary and fully evolved, there's still a ton to choose from... it's really a matter of who's popular and especially current gen in terms of newcomers.
 
Predicting Mimikyu cause it's the second most popular Alolan Pokémon. Nihilego isn't discussed much, but it could also happen. Lycanroc is maybe possible, but I'm not sure it's as likely as the other two, and I'm not sure which form they'd want to use either.
 
I say convince Sakurai to give us Ditto and he just copies any enemy, move for move, but has the Ditto face. It'll work probably.
 
My pick for a Pokemon rep is still the same as it's always been...I want Meowth in Smash. He's been in the show for almost as much as Pikachu and they could even get creative and integrate some Poke Trainer-esk designs in his moveset that involves Team Rocket...but rather functioning more like Luma or Nana.
 
My pick for a Pokemon rep is still the same as it's always been...I want Meowth in Smash. He's been in the show for almost as much as Pikachu and they could even get creative and integrate some Poke Trainer-esk designs in his moveset that involves Team Rocket...but rather functioning more like Luma or Nana.
Meowth sounds like a character that would get bodied by Cloud / Marth.

I am curious to see what the Pokeballs are going to be this time around (I am predicting a different thread on this though), with Gen 7 now here. For stages, one of the Stadiums are likely to return (most likely Stadium 2) and a new stage for the new generation is likely going to arrive (Brawl got Spear Pillar, which is gen 4; SSB4 got Prism Tower / Kalos League, both are gen 6). For characters, I have no idea what is going to happen. It is anybody's guess by now.
 
Honestly...I feel like speculators misinterpret much of the decisions made regarding Pokémon characters. There ends up being this emphasis on fan popularity, who "deserves" it most, who is "supposed" to get in, that it feels like people are focusing too much on a given mon's status and not enough on the details that actually matter. Sakurai has said so much about prominence and having unique abilities to stand out with, and yet the community keeps overlooking it in favor of arguing over deservedness. Why are we acting like we the fans have to approve of every newcomer before we even know anything about them? Awfully close-minded, don't you think?

As for my own thoughts, there're reasons why I've been putting such focus on Decidueye and Lycanroc in particular. They both have that right combination of moveset potential, standout abilities, and elemental niches that the current roster hardly touches. Not to mention enough prominence right now to have definitely been on the short list of newcomers considered back in mid-2016, albeit for different reasons: Decidueye being a starter, Lycanroc being a highly prominent non-starter whose starring role in the Alola anime secures its place in Gen 7's upper echelon. It feels like the situation Chrom and Robin were in last time, complete with the "Chrom" being the only one most outside the Pokémon fandom even bother to look at. Though this time, "Chrom" wouldn't have issues standing out, and so it'd come down more to who is considered the more compelling option...or maybe they'll both make it, considering how many other times we've seen two newcomers from the same franchise before!

I'll say this, though: All the talk/assumptions regarding a Gen 8 mon are misguided. It's another example of people misinterpreting the intent behind a decision made last time. While we know Greninja (and presumably a few other Gen 6 mons) were looked at while Gen 6 was still in development, it was done with the knowledge that X and Y were going to be out a full year before Smash 4 was. These decisions are always made with the big picture in mind, and so it'd have made no sense to jump the gun and push for a Gen 8 mon back in 2016 while Gen 7 was still in development, for a game that'd be out up to a year before Gen 8 started!
 
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Personally, I’m excited to see Gen 7 in action as Pokeball Pokemon, especially the Ultra Beasts. Some of my most wanted ones includes Mudsdale, Vikavolt, Drampa, Mimikyu, Bewear, Lyanroc, Wishiwashi, Tapu Koko, Nihelgo, Buzzwole, Kartana, and Necrozoma.
 
D
I wouldn't mind Necrozma as a boss, also Sky Pillar could be an interesting stage.
 
The potential for and amount of sense it makes putting Eevee in makes me sad that it's almost certainly not going to happen unless the Pokeball appearance is a misdirect or doesn't disqualify her inclusion in Sakurai's mind.

Something I posted elsewhere:

"Reasons:
1. Eevee is probably the third most popular Pokemon, especially considering Japan.
2. Eevee is the star of her own game being released three weeks before SSBU is released in the US.
3. Depending on how she's built out, Eevee offers the chance to allow in Pokemon from multiple generations, which leads me to...

How she might work:
1. Option 1 would be that she would function exclusively as her own character as represented in the Let's Go! Eevee version. This would make her significantly less interesting in my view, but it would also play into my theory that you would be able to import "your" Pikachu (and in this case, Eevee) from the Let's Go! games for a costume. So you would access your PLG!P/PLG!E save and Pikachu and/or Eevee would appear in SSBU with the haircut and accessories you've applied in that save as a costume selection option.

2. Option 2 is that, when playing with Eevee, items would automatically drop at random, even if they're turned off. If Eevee picks up those items, she would evolve into the corresponding evolution. This work something like:

- Water Stone appears, Eevee grabs it and evolves to Vaporeon for the rest of the match
- Fire Stone appears --> Flareon
- Thunder Stone --> Jolteon
- Sun Shard --> Espeon
- Moon Shard --> Umbreon
- Moss Rock --> Leafeon
- Ice Rock --> Glaceon
- Some made up item approximating a Fairy Rock/Stone/Shard --> Sylveon

The items could be picked up by other characters and thrown, causing minor damage with a corresponding elemental effect. A last thought would be that the exception would be the fairy item, which would heal the person picking it up by a few percentage points.

3. Option 3 is that, at the select screen, Eevee defaults to evolving to Jolteon/Flareon/Vaporeon with directional specials but the player can select her evolutionary loadouts at the character select screen. Eevee would remain as whichever Pokemon you evolved her to unless/until she dies, and would return to the stage as Eevee. "
 
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